Vertical slide bolt door lock



J. H. ROETHEL VERTICAL SLIDE BOLT DOOR LOCK 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. Jo//N bf @off/fa Feb. 28, 1956 Filed June 4, 1954 JJ 0V 0 NQ M, M W 3 4 Q7 Feb- 28, 1956 J. H. ROETHEL.

VERTICAL SLIDE BOLT DOOR LOCK 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 4, 1954 nited States Patent O VERTICAL SLIDE BOLT DOOR LOCK John H. Roethel, Coral Gables, Fla., assignor to Roethel Engineering Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application June 4, 1954, Serial No. 434,504

8 Claims. (Cl. 292-165) This invention relates to a latch control mechanism for swinging doors, particularly the doors of automobile or other vehicle bodies, an object of the invention being to provide an improved door latch mechanism which is characterized by its simplicity and compactness in construction and which is economical to manufacture, comparatively quiet in operation and eicient in use.

The improved door latch mechanism of the present invention comprises a substantially vertically slidable latch bolt normally urged into latching engagement with a striker or keeper device mounted on a body pillar, latch bolt release means for disengageing the latch bolt from the striker or keeper device, said release means including an actuator which is preferably a pivotally mounted lever, and a pivoted member having blocking means which may be positioned in blocking relation to a blocking portion on the release means actuator to render the latter inoperative to effect disengagement of the latch bolt from the striker or keeper device.

More particularly the door latch embodied in the present invention comprises a support having a main plate portion. A vertically slidable latch bolt is mounted on the front face of the main plate, said bolt having a toothlike portion thereof normally projecting into keeper or striker engaging position. An actuator, preferably a pivotally movable lever, is mounted on the rear or opposite side of said plate portion, said actuator having a part thereof in opposing relation to a part of said latch bolt, one of said parts projecting through an aperture in said plate portion in said opposing relation to the other of said parts. The actuator is adapted to be moved by outer manually operable means, such as a push button mounted in the outside door handle, and when so moved its part will abut the latch bolt and thereby lift the latch bolt in unlatching direction. The actuator is provided with a blocking portion thereon. A blocking means is mounted on the support, said blocking means preferably being a member pivotally mounted on the rearor opposite side of said plate portion, and is shiftable into blocking relation to the actuator blocking portion by manually operable means. In one illustrated embodiment of the invention the blocking member may be shifted into blocking position from the inside of the door or from the outside of the door, in the latter case such movement being actuated through the medium o,f a key operated mechanism. Door latch mechanisms including key operated means for placing the mechanism in locked condition are generally utilized only on the front doors of automobile bodies. The second embodiment of the invention illustrates a latch mechanism in which the blocking means is movable into blocking position only from the inside of the vehicle door, this embodiment being lparticularly adapted for use on the rear doors of automobile bodies.

The first embodiment of the invention herein illustrated also includes a means for automatically restoring the blocking member to non-blocking position in the event that the blocking member is placedv in blocking position when the vehicle door is in an open position and the vehicle Patented Feb. 28, 1956 ice door is then closed. The automatic means for restoring the blocking member to non-blocking position has for its purpose the prevention of inadvertent locking of the door. In the second embodiment of the invention, the embodiment particularly adapted for use on the rear doors of vehicles, such automatic restoring means is not provided.

Other objects and features of this invention will appear in the following description and appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several views.

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the latch mechanism of one embodiment of the present invention and illustrates the relationship in latched position of the latch bolt thereof to a striker or'keeper device.

Fig. 2 is a view in part sectional illustrating the reverse side of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a view in part sectional taken substantially through line 4 4 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the second embodiment of the latch mechanism of the present invention.

Fig. 6 is a view of the reverse side of Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a side elevation of Fig. 5.

Fig. 8 is a view in part sectional taken substantially through line 8 8 of Fig. 5 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Before explaining in detail the present invention it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and arrangements of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawings, since the invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or carried out in various ways. Also it is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.

In the drawings there is illustrated, by way of example, particular embodiments of the present invention as applied to the doors and frame structures of an automobile. The embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. l to 4 inclusive comprises a case plate 10 provided with screw bosses 11 which are adapted to receive screws for fastening the case plate to the jamb portion or free edge wall of the door, the case plate having a ange 12 which is adapted to be positioned along the inner panel of the door. The case plate is adapted to be mounted on the door with its longitudinal axis extending substantially in the direction of the longitudinalaxis of the door. Secured to the front face 13 of the case plate is a substantially rectangular housing 14 having an opening at the lower edge 15 thereof. A latch bolt 16 is slidably retained for movement in a substantially up and down direction between the plate portion 17 of the housing and the face 13 of the case plate.

The illustrated latch bolt 16 is preferably molded of a plastic material', such as nylon, which is characterized by its low coeicient of friction when sliding on steel and which has low adhesion to ice and therefore will not readily freeze to the case plate. As illustrated, the latchl bolt 16 has a cross-sectional thickness substantially equal to the distance between the case plate surface 13 and the inner face of the housing plate portion 17. The t of the latch bolt 16 between the two plate surfaces is such that the bolt will be freely movable therebetween.

In order to lighten the latch bolt 16 and to save on the quantity of material used therein, the latch bolt is provided with a number of recesses in the side thereof adjacent the face 13 of the case plate, some of the recesses having additional functional utility as will be hereinafter explained. The latch bolt lisan elongated and vertically extending member and is provided with a toothlike projection 18 thereon extending below the lower edge of the housing. The toothlike projection is adapted to engage a striker or keeper, as illustrated in Fig. 1, the keeper being generally designated 19.

Associated with the bolt is a latch bolt release actuator which is preferably a substantially vertically extending lever, generally designated 20, which is pivoted intermediate its ends upon a shoulder rivet or `stud 21. The release lever 2) is mounted on the inner face 22 of the case plate and is provided with two arm portions, one arm 23 extending at a slight angle below the horizontal from the pivot stud toward the flange and the second arm 24 extending in a substantially vertical direction downwardly. The arm 23 has mounted on the swingable end thereof a horizontally extending roller 25 adapted to project through an aperture 26 in the case plate 10 toward the latch. bolt 16. The roller 25 projects through the aperture 26 linto a recess portion 27 of the latch bolt 16 and underlies the edge v2S of a wall section thereof. By virtue of this construction, the release lever and the latch bolt 16 are so related that if the release lever is swung in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. l, the roller will abut the edge of the llatch bolt 23 and thereby lift the latter upwardly in unlatching direction.

The downwardly extending arm 24 of the release lever is formed with a flange 29 thereon. This lever arm 24 is adapted to be engaged on the outer side of the flange by an outside manually operable means, such as a push button 30, for imparting the pivotal or swinging mo-vement to the release lever 20 necessary to cause unlatching movement of the latch bolt 16.

The latch bolt 16 is yieldingly urged toward the latching direction, that is, downwardly, and the release lever 26 is urged toward its normal position shown in Fig. l by a single cylindrical coil spring 31. The spring 31 is seated in a recess 32 in the latch bolt. At its upper end the spring 31 abuts against the underside of a lug 33 projecting into the recess 32, the lug being lanced out of the material of the face plate. The spring 31 thus urges the latch bolt 16 downwardly at all times, the downward movement being limited by the upper edge of the recess 32 coming into abutting relation to the lug 33. The spring 31 urges the latch bolt downwardly at all times so as to yieldingly maintain the toothlike projection 18 thereon in striker or keeper device 19 engaging p0- sition.

Because of the abutting relation of the latch bolt edge 2S and the roller 25 on the end of the release lever arm 23, 'the spring 31 will also function to urge the release lever 2@ in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. l, about the lever pivot axis 21. Thus, the single spring 31 is utilized to maintain the latch bolt 16 and the release lever 2t? in their normal positions.

The present latch mechanism incorporates a remote control mechanism so constructed as to permit movement of the latch bolt 16 independently of the release lever 20. This remote control mechanism comprises a bell crank lever 34 preferably manually actuated from the inside of the door remote from the case plate by means of a door handle (not shown) mounted on the inuer panel .of the vehicle door. Referring particularly to Figs. 2 and 4, the bell crank lever 34 is shown pivotally mounted on the flange 12 by means of a pivot or shoulder stud 35. The bell crank lever 34 is provided with a substantially downwardly extending arm 36 and a substantially horizontally extending arm 37,'the arm 36 being adapted to be connected by a draft link 3S to the inside door handle mechanism. The bell crank lever arm 37 is offset at its free or swingable end 39 and extends through an aperture or a slot 40 in the case plate 10 so as to underlie an edge 41 of a recess 42 in the latch bolt 16. Movement of the bell crank lever 34 in a clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 4, will cause the end 39 thereof toI abut nthe bolt edge V41 thereby to lift .the latch bolt 16 yupwardly against the resistance of the spring 31.

In the present embodiment means is provided for restraining or blocking the release lever 20 against operation from the outside of the door. The blocking means comprises a lever 43 pivoted intermediate its` ends on a shoulder stud 44 secured to the face 22 of the case plate 10. As best seen in Fig. 2, the pivot axis of the blocking lever 43 is located below the pivot axis of the release lever 20. The lever 43 extends in a substantially horizontal direction. On one end 4S the lever is provided with a flange 46, which flange, when the blocking lever 43 is in the position shown in Fig. 2, lies in the path of swinging movement of the lower end or blocking portion 47 of the lever arm 24 and thereby blocks swinging movement of the lever arm in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 2. Since it is necessary for the release lever 20 to swing in such counterclockwise direction in order that the lever roller 25 abut the latch bolt edge 28 to raise the latch bolt 16, the relationship of the flange to the end or blocking portion 47 of the lever arm, as shown in Fig. 2, renders the outer manually operable means, such as the push botton 30, inoperative to release the latch mechanism from the outside of the door and the door cannot be opened.

in the present embodiment the blocking lever 43 .may be shifted into or out of blocking position from either the inside or the outside of the vehicle door. From the outside of the door such movement is accomplished by turning a key in a conventional key operated cylinder locking mechanism a portion of which is schematically shown and designated 48. As best viewed in Fig. 3, the plate portion 1f? is provided with a small flange 49 having pivotally mounted thereon a crank arm 50. The crank arm St) is rigidly secured to a tubular rivet 51 which is rotatably secured to the flange 49. The tubular rivet is provided with a rectangular aperture 52 adapted to receive the conventional rectangular cross-section shaft 53 of the key cylinder mechanism 48. The crank arm 56 is provided at the free or swingable end thereof with a projection 54 engageable with the edge walls of a rectangular aperture 55 in a second blocking lever flange 56. By turning the key in the key cylinder mechanism the crank arm 50 may be swung to shift the blocking member 43 in one direction or the other either to position the blocking lever blocking flange 46 in its blocking position shown in Fig. 2 or in its non-blocking position. The key control means is usually embodied in the front door latch mechanism of an automobile body but is usually omitted from the latch mechanisms used on the rear doors.

In the present embodiment the remote control operated bell crank lever 3e is utilized to swing the blocking lever d3 into blocking position from the inside of the vehicle door. The blocking lever 43 is provided with a horizontal arm or extension 57 which extends in the general direction of the flange l2 of the case plate 14?. When the blocking lever 43 is in non-blocking position the arm or extension 57 immediately underlies the lower edge of the bell crank lever arm 37. Nhen in such relationship, movement of the bell crank lever 34 in the counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 4, by manipulation of the inside door handle in a direction opposite to that in which it is normally swung to open the vehicle door, will cause the lower edge 53 of the bell crank arm 37 to abut the arm or extension S7 and thereby swing the blocking lever 43 in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 2, thereby positioning the blocking flange 46 thereon in blocking position relative to the lever 2d.

The case plate is provided with a stop in the form of a lug 59 lanced out of the plate 1t) to limit counterclockwise swinging movement, as viewed in Fig. 2, of the blocking lever 43. A toggle spring 6i? is provided having one end seated in an aperture in the case plate and its other end in an aperture in the blocking lever. The toggle spring 65) yieldingly urges and holds the blocking lever 43 toward its upper andlower limits of movement.

The latch bolt is provided with a horizontally extending pin 61 at the lower right hand corner thereof, as

.5 viewed in Fig. 2. The pin, which may be integrally molded on the latch bolt, extends through an elongated slot 62 which in the present instance is an extension of the aperture 40 in the case plate 10 through which the arm 37 of the bell crank 34 projects. The pin 61 is adapted to underlie the edge of the blocking lever arm or extension 57 when the latter is in the position shown in Fig. 2. The pin 61 is adapted to automatically swing the blocking lever 43 from release lever blocking position to nonblocking position in the event that the latch mechanism is released by actuation of the door handle on the inside of the vehicle door while the blocking lever is in blocking position or in the event that the blocking lever is placed in blocking position while the vehicle door is in an open position and the vehicle door is then swung shut. This feature of construction is referred to as the kick-out means, that is, a means for automatically restoring the blocking lever to non-blocking position to prevent the vehicle door from being inadvertently locked. When the pin 61 and `the blocking lever arm or extension 57 are in the relative positions shown in Fig. 2, upward movement of the pin 61 will cause it to abut the blocking lever arm or extension 57 and will cause the blocking lever 43 to be swung downwardly to a position in which the toggle spring 60 .will cross its dead center position and urge the blocking lever 43, and accordingly the blocking flange 46 thereon, to its fully non-blocking position as governed by the stop lug 59.

It will be noted that the latch bolt projection 18 has an inclined leading edge 62 which upon engagement with the striker or keeper device 19 as the vehicle door is moved from an open to a closed position acts to cam the latch bolt upwardly. Since the release lever roller 25 lies below the abutting edge 28 of the latch bolt 16 and the bell crank lever arm 37 lies below the abutting edge 41 of the latch bolt 16, upward movement of the latch plate or bolt upon engagement with the striker or keeper 19 is independent of and does not result in any movement of the release lever 20 or bell crank 34. This independent movement of the latch bolt 16, through the abutting relation of the pin 61 to the blocking lever 43, if the latter is in blocking position, will automatically restore the blocking lever to non-blocking position.

Fig. l illustrates the cooperative relationship between the latch bolt 16 and the keeper or striker device, hereinbefore generally designated 19, to hold the vehicle door in latched position. In general, the keeper or striker 19 comprises a C-shaped structure having upper and lower body portions 63 and 64 respectively. The upper body portion 63 is formed at its upper edge with two integral upstanding tooth-like projections 65 and 66 which the latch bolt projection 18 is adapted to engage to hold the door in either safety or nal locking position. When the projection 18 is in engagement with the keeper tooth 65 the door is in safety latching position and when the projection 18 is in engagement with the tooth 66 the door is in final latching position.

The upper surface 67 of the lower body portion 64 forms a ramp engageable by a suitably contoured dovetail or abutment 81 fastened to the front face of the case plate 10. A yieldable wedging means is carried on the underside of the upper body portion 63 of the striker device and engages the upper surface of the dovetail or abutment 68 to firmly hold the door against vibratory movement in a vertical plane. The wedging means in the present instance comprises a wedge block 69 controlled by a compression spring 70, the Wedge block and spring being slidably retained within a recess 71 in the lower surface of the upper body portion 63 by means of a guide rod 72 fastened to the end walls of the recess 71. The spring 70 is installedunder initial compression and urges the wedge outwardly or to the right as viewed in Fig. 1. During closing movement of the door, the wedge block 69 is carried inwardly to some extent 4against the resistance of 'the spring 70, the wedge block tending to tighten itself 6 against the upper surface of the abutment'68 and hence maintaining the latch bolt projection 18 in engagement with the striker or keeper tooth 66 and also minimizing any possible vibratory movement of the vehicle door.

It will be noted that, although a compression spring 31 is provided to urge the latch bolt 16 downwardly into latching engagement with the striker or keeper 16, the latch bolt 19 being movable in a substantially up and down direction will normally tend to maintain itself in latching engagement with the striker or keeper. Thus, even if the spring 31 should ultimately fail, the vehicle door may still be latched so as to be maintained in a closed position until repairs can be made. This will, of course, be recognized as being an important feature from a safety standpoint.

The embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 5 to 8 inclusive contains many parts having functional characteristics similar to the parts shown in the embodiment of Figs. l to 4 inclusive. Where the parts are functionally similar but of different shape suitable indicia have been added to the reference numerals to indicate the fact that a dissimilarity in shape exists. For example, the release lever of the embodiment of Figs. l to 4 inclusive was generally designated 20. The release lever of the present embodiment, that of Figs. 5 to 8 inclusive, is designated 20. The dissimilarity in shape of the parts of the latch mechanism embodying the present invention is the result of constructing and arranging said parts to meet actual body conditions of a late model vehicle. Thus, the embodiment of Figs. 5 to 8 inclusive which is particularly adapted for the rear doors of vehicles reflects the difference in rear body pillar and rear door free edge wall conditions as distinguished from the body conditions affecting the latch mechanism embodied in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive which is particularly adapted forluse on vehicle front doors.

AS has been noted in the foreword to the detailed description of the present invention, latch mechanisms used on the rear doors of vehicles are generally not provided with key cylinder means for locking the vehicle door from the outside. Further, the kick out means, that is, the automatic means for restoring the latch mechanism to unlocked condition in the event the parts are placed in locked condition with the door opened and the door is then closed, is also not utilized. It has been found desirable to permit the latch mechanism to be placed in locked condition with the door in an open position and to have the mechanism remain in such condition throughout and after the closing movement of the door. A further feature desirable in rear door locks is the provision of means for rendering the inside remote control handle inoperative to release the latch mechanism when the mechanism has been placed in locked condition. This is particularly useful when small children are carried as passengers in the rear of the vehicle since rendering the rear door remote control handle inoperative prevents the possibility of the rear door being inadvertently opened permitting the children to fall out.

In the present embodiment the foregoing desired characteristics of a latch mechanism particularly adapted for use on the rear doors of vehicles are obtained by the following construction and arrangement.

In the present embodiment movement of the latch bolt 19 in an upward or disengaging direction both from the outside and the inside of the vehicle door is accomplished through movement of the release lever 20. The release lever 20 is provided with a horizontally extending arm 73Vsomewhat longer than the arm 23 of the previously described embodiment. The free or swingable end of the arm 73 overlies the arm 37 of the vremote control operated bell crank lever 34. Incidentally, the lbell crank lever 34 as shown in Fig. 8 is inverted from the position in which it was shown in Fig. 4 to avoid interference with another part of the mechanism, suitable compensation being made in the remote control linkage to insure that groesse proper swinging movement of the bell crank occurs. In the present embodiment, the bell crank lever arm 37 does not directly engage the bolt 16 but is only able to raise the bolt 16 by engaging and swinging the arm 73 of the release lever 2li in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 6, thereby causing the roller 25 to abut and lift the latch bolt.

It will thus be believed readily apparent that if the release lever 2li' is blocked against swinging movement, not `onlyr the outside operator, represented by the button 30, but also the inside operator acting through the bell crank lever 34 is rendered ineffective to release the latch bolt 16 from the keeper or striker 19.

In the present embodiment the release lever 20' may be blocked against swinging movement by a blocking lever, generally designated 74. The blocking lever 74 is provided with a blocking flange 75 at one end thereof. At the other end thereof the blocking lever '74 is provided With an extension 76. The extension 76 is engageable by the forked end 7'7 of a second bell crank lever 7S pivotally mounted on the flange l2 of the case plate by means of a shoulder or pivot stud 79. The bell crank lever 78 is provided with an opstanding arm Si) adapted to be connected by a link Sl and a suitable lever system to a push button means (not shown) accessible at the inside of the vehicle door. This push button means is standard on most vehicles and the foregoing brief description is believed adequate.

As viewed in Fig. 6, the blocking lever 73 is shown in blocking position with respect to the release lever If the end of the blocking lever arm or extension '76 is lifted upwardly, as by swinging the bell crank lever 78 in a clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 8, the blocking lever 73 will be swung out of blocking position. Suitable stops 82 and 83 are provided to limit swinging movement of the blocking lever 73 in either direction, the stops being in the form of lugs lanced out of the plate lil.

A further and minor modification that will be noted with regard to the construction and arrangement of the parts of the present embodiment is the relationship of the spring 3i with respect to the latch bolt 16. The coil spring 31 is located in a recess 83, the recess being open at the top thereof. The upper end of the spring 31 abuts against the underside of the upper wall S4 of the housing 14.

Downward movement of the bolt i9 is limited by a stop 85 lanced out of the plate itl', the stop underlying the upper edge 86 of a recess S7 in the bolt 19.

To stunmarize the mode of operation of the present embodiment it will be noted that the blocking lever 74 is shiftable into blocking position with respect to the release lever 26 only through actuation of the bell crank lever 7S. When placed in blocking position the blocking lever 78 renders the latch mechanism inoperative Vfrom both the outside and inside of the door since both the outside and inside operators are only able to move the latch bolt 16 in upward or striker disengaged direction through the medium of the release lever 20. The latter being blocked thus blocks movement of the push button and the remote control operated bell crank 34.

Restoration of the blocking lever 74 to non-blocking can only be accomplished through the medium of the bell crank lever 7S. In the present embodiment there is no pin 6l carried by the bolt which is able to transmit independent motion of the bolt 15 to the blocking lever 74. Thus, if the blocking lever 74 is placed in blocking position with the door open and the door is then closed, the bolt lo upon engagement with the striker i9 merely will move up and down without of the latch mechanism. The blocking lever 74 will remain in blocking position and the door thus will remain locked.

'lt will be noted that although a compression 31 is provided to urge the latch bolt i6 downwardly into latching engagement with the striker or keeper 19, the

atecting any of the parts p latch bolt 16 being movable in a substantially up and down direction will normally tend to maintain itself in latching engagement with the striker or keeper. Thus, even if the spring 31 should ultimately fail, the vehicle door may still be latched so as to be maintained in a closed position until repairs can be made. This will, of course, be recognized as being an important feature from a safety standpoint.

l claim:

l. in a latch mechanism for a swinging door, a support having a plate portion adapted to be mounted on the free edge wall of the door, a vertically slidable latch device mounted on said plate portion for movement between a door latched and a door unlatched position, actuator means comprising a lever pivotally mounted on said plate portion and having a generally horizontally extending arm and a generally vertically extending arm, said horizontally extending arm having a part thereon arranged in opposing relation to a part of said latch device, said vertically extending arm having a blocking portion thereon, outer manually operable means engageabie with said vertically extending arm of said lever to swing said 'horizontally extending arm to cause said parts to abut and move the latch device upwardly into door unlatched position, a substantially horizontally extending swingable member mounted on said plate portion and having blocking means for cooperation with said blocking portion, said swingable member being movable to dispose said blocking means in position to be engaged by said blocking portion and render the lever ineffective to move said latch device into door unlatched position.

2. in a latch mechanism for a swinging door, a support having a plate portion adapted to be mounted on the free edge wall of the door, a vertically slidable latch device mounted on said plate portion for movement between a door latched and a door unlatched position, actuator means comprising a lever pivotally mounted on said plate portion and having a generally horizontally extending arm and a generally vertically extending arm, said horizontally extending arm having a part thereon arranged in opposing relation to a part of said latch device, said vertically extending arm having a blocking vportion thereon, manually operable means engageable with said lever to swing said horizontally extending arm to cause said part to abut and move the latch device into door unlatched position, a substantially horizontally extending swingable member mounted on said plate portion and having blocking means for cooperation with said blocking portion, said swingable member being movable to dispose said blocking means in position to be engaged by said blocking portion and render the actuator means ineifective to move said latch device into door unlatched position.

3. in a latch mechanism for a swinging door, a support having a plate portion adapted to be mounted on the free edge wall of the door, a vertically slidable latch device mounted on said plate portion for movement between a door latched and a door unlatched position, actuator means comprising a lever pivotally mounted on said plate portion and having a generally horizontally extending arm and a generally vertically extending arm, said horizontally extending arm having a part thereon arranged in opposing relation to a part of said latch device, said vertically extending arm having a blocking portion thereon, outer manually operable means engageable with said vertically extending arm of said lever to swing said horizontally extending arm to cause said parts to abut and move the latch device upwardly into door unlatched position, a substantiallyy horizontally extending swingable member mounted on said plate portion and having blocking means for cooperation with said blocking portion, said swingable member being movable to dispose said blocking means in position to 'be engaged by said blocking portion and render the lever ineffective to move said latch device into door unlatched position, and means on said latch device in abutting relation to said swingable member blocking means when the latter is disposed in blocking position effective upon independent actuation of the latch device for moving said swingable member out of blocking position with respect to said lever.

4. In a latch mechanism for a swinging door, a supvport having a plate portion adapted to be mounted on the free edge wall of the door, a vertically slidable latch device mounted on the outer side of said plate portion for movement between a door latched and a door unlatched position, actuator means comprising a lever pivotally mounted on the other side of said plate portion and having a generally horizontally extending arm and a generally vertically extending arm, said horizontally extending arm having a part thereon projecting through an aperture in said plate portion and arranged in opposing relation to a part of said latch device, said vertically extending arm having a blocking portion thereon, outer manually operable means engageable with said vertically extending arm of said lever to swing said horizontally extending arm to cause said parts to abut and move the latch device upwardly into door unlatched position, a substantially horizontally extending swingable member mounted on said plate portion and having blocking means for cooperation with said blocking portion, said swingable member being movable to dispose said blocking means in position to be engaged by said blocking portion and render the lever ineiective to move said latch device into door unlatched position.

5. In a latch mechanism for a swinging door, a support having a plate portion adapted to be mounted on the free edge wall of the door, a vertically slidable latch device mounted on the outer side of said plate portion for movement between a door latched and a door unlatched position, actuator means for moving said latch device comprising a lever pivotally mounted on the other side of said plate portion and having a generally horizontally extending arm and a generally vertically extending arm, said horizontally extending arm having a part thereon projecting through an aperture in said plate portion and arranged in opposing relation to a part of said latch device, said vertically extending arm having a blocking portion thereon, inner manually operable means engageable with said horizontally extending arm to swing the same to cause said parts to abut and move the latch device into door unlatched position, a substantially horizontally extending swingable member mounted on said plate portion and having blockmeans for cooperation with said blocking portion,

said swingable member being movable to dispose said blocking means in position to be engaged by said blocking portion and render the actuator means ineiective to move said latch device into door unlatched position.

6. In a latch mechanism for a swinging door, a support having a plate portion for disposition at the jamb edge of the door, a vertically slidable latch bolt mounted on said plate portion and having a striker engaging portion at the lower end thereof, spring means for urging said bolt downwardly, a bolt release member mounted on said plate portion and having a part extending in opposing relation to a part of said bolt, said release member having a portion adapted to be shifted by outer manually operable means transversely of the door in the direction of the inner edge of the plate portion to cause said parts to abut and raise the bolt out of striker engagement, means movable into and out of position for blocking operation of said release member, and inner manually operable means shiftable in one direction to move said bolt out of striker engagement independently of the release member and shiftable in the other direction to move the means for blocking operation of said release member into blocking position.

7. In a latch mechanism for a swinging door, a support having a plate portion adapted to be mounted on the free edge wall of the door, a vertically slidable latch device mounted on said plate portion for movement between a door latched and a door unlatched position, a lever means pivotally mounted on said plate portion, said lever means having a rst arm adapted to be engaged by outer manually operable means and a second arm having a part thereof arranged in opposing relation to a part of the latch device, said lever means being swingable to cause said parts to abut and shift the latch device vertically into door unlatched position, one of said lever means arms having a blocking portion, a swingable member mounted on said support and having a part movable in a substantially up and down direction, said part having blocking means for cooperation with said blocking portion, said swingable member being movable to dispose said blocking means in position to be engaged by said blocking portion thereby to block said lever and render the same inelective to move said latch device into door unlatched position, and inner manually operable means pivotally mounted on said support swingable in one direction to shift the latch device vertically into door unlatched position independently of said lever means and swingable in the opposite direction to swing said swingable member into blocking position.

8. In a latch mechanism for a swinging door, a support having a plate portion adapted to be mounted on the free edge wall of the door and having a ange extending angularly therefrom, a vertically slidable latch device mounted on said plate portion for movement between a door latched and a door unlatched position, actuator means comprising a lever pivotally mounted on said plate portion and having a generally horizontally extending arm and a generally vertically extending arm, said horizontally extending arm having a part thereon arranged in opposing relation to a part of said latch device, said vertically extending arm having a blocking portion thereon, said vertically extending arm of said lever being adapted to be engaged by outer manually operable means to swing said horizontally extending arm to cause said parts to abut and move the latch device upwardly into door unlatched position, a substantially horizontally extending swingable member mounted on said plate portion and having blocking means for cooperation with said blocking portion, said swingable member being movable to dispose said blocking means in position to be engaged by said blocking portion and render the lever inelective to move said latch device into door unlatched position, and inner manually operable means pivotally mounted on said ange and swingable in one direction to move the latch device upwardly into door unlatched position independently of said actuator means and swingable in the opposite direction to swing said swingable member into blocking position.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,331,166 Ochsner Feb. 17, 1920 2,272,167 Cloutier et al Feb. 10, 1942 2,646,300 Roethel July 21, 1953 

